Stevarino

Before, when they didn't have a TV to watch, things like peeling fava beans, brought people closer to the food, and each other, leaving them with a greater understanding & respect for both. No? I hope you weren't peeling all those fave by yourself. That would be a shame.

Shrimp & Mushrooms over ceci puree Chef Nicola starts out with chick peas, potato, EVOO, and boils it in plain old water. Most of it gets pureed, but some is reserved for contrast This way, you get creamy, with bits of potato & chick pea in the creamy puree. Chef Nicola starts off with that garlic in oil mixture in the pan, and adds a variety of sliced mushrooms... followed by the shrimp. As the water releases from the mushrooms & shrimp, it forms the sauce, to which a little water was added as well. (and probably salt) When the shrimp turn pink, its done. Spoon it over the chick pea... garnish with some pane di Altamura croutons, and drizzle with EVOO. Yummm.

Shrimp with cardoncello mushrooms An interesting combination of flavors; shrimp, mushrooms, and Mandarin orange. Chef Nicola peels the oranges & dries them near a fire to firm them, so they dont fall apart when they cook in the sauce. Like with everything else, he starts with EVOO... and he adds the cardoncello mushrooms. He added the shrimp, and tomato product, now he's adding the orange segments.

Busboy, I see your point. Thank you for sharing your opinion with me. But, for some strange reason, I feel like a dog that just had its chain yanked on really hard. "I spent a few years working as a waiter and perhaps you Canadians are a little closer to the old Enlish class system than we Yanks , but I never encountered a superior attitude towards the kitchen. We hated owners, managers, investors, poor tippers, women who pulled out calculators to split their checks and people who came in late and ordered dessert, but the kitchen staff never came up. As for wages, I never once met a waiter who gave a shit what anyone else was making, unless it came out of their pocket. The argument over who "deserves" what is endless and pointless. Should waiters make more than line cooks? Should football players make more than teachers? Should CEOs make more than PM's? As long as people are willing to work in the kitchen for what owners are offering, that's what they're going to get paid."

I think that this thread should join up with the thread on the high cost, and low entry level pay, of culinary schools. I think that it is wonderful that Americans don't mind tipping 20%, and then an additional, upwards of 8% sales tax, on top of their bill. The problem that I see is that there is an imbalance of pay in "high end" restaurants, for front & back. The average diner doesn't understand the sacrifice that goes on behind the green curtain. It takes years to develop the skills to produce quality as would be required of a high dinner check, and the tip that you give to the server, in gratitude for that level of dining experience. It's not the server's fault, but it's not the cook's fault either. The fault lies in the system. Obviously, the extremeties are far apart, from tipping on a $10 VS $100 check. The cook at Denny's may do fine VS the server's tips by the end of the day, but in a fine dining arena, things quickly become lopsided. My views are somewhat jaded, but if you consider what it costs to staff a dining room with $2.36 an Hr. servers, and $8 per Hr. bartender(s), its not that difficult to financially manage a labor budget. In the kitchen, on the other hand, and I'm not talking about corporate chains, there is alot of time consuming labor going on, bothed skilled and less skilled, that in order to give the diner that experience, that food must be ordered, recieved, prepped, executed, dishes, utensils, and equipment washed & maintained, and properly cleaned & maintained on a daily basis. And as one poster earlier pointed out, Yeah, 80% of the time, its the kitchen's fault. Okay then, lets take into consideration what that server had to risk, or sacrifice, in order to recieve the 20% gratuity of their sales. I'm here to tell you, any restaurant owner would love to net 20% on their business, without any financial sacrifice. I am not saying that 20% is too much, I just think that it shouldn't be distributed in the way that it is. All employees of that restaurant should recieve pay that is representative of their productivity.In all fairness, I don't believe that the system supports this ethically. Servers in the US, for the most part, find it a good way to earn great pay, on their way to another profession. The Chefs and cooks in the kitchen have made their career choice, and are making every sacrifice on a daily basis to be successful in "THIS" profession.

Thanks Kevin! I tend to over complicate things sometimes with my formal training. Just like you said; one hour. Pontormo, heres what they look like without this skins. They are called Habas on my box. Put em in the pot with 4 cups plain old water to one cup favas. Simmer on low heat for one hour, and some start to crumble way before then. Kinda mash em up and add a liitle more water if needed. Grill some bread over a wood fire if you got one Pour your beans in a bowl, drizzle on some EVOO and sea salt Let's go! Hey, pretty tasty, cant wait to do it with the dandelions!

Thanks for the additional points there. Now I'm really intrigued about this cheese. Is it sheep or cow's milk? And your wine point brings up a whole other area of concern of such a strong red not working well with seafood . . . ←

I haven't cooked them in over a year but heres my notes on what I did with the fava beans; "I soaked the dried fava beans overnight in cold water. The beans doubled in volume, and I allowed for two ounces per person. I put the beans in cold water, and brought them to a boil. Then I strained them, washed them, and added fresh water to cook the beans, I added small diced onion, celery, parsley stem, and garlic. I also added sliced potatoes to give the beans more body. When the beans were soft, I pureed them, and seasoned them with salt & extra virgin olive oil. " I feel motivated to try it again. The organic farm has baby red dandelion greens on his product list this week. If I can get some, I 'll cook it up & post it!

It didn't really seem that appetizing to me when I saw him using it. It reminded me of that aweful chopped garlic that comes in a jar, that they market as "zesty", that alot of restaurants in Suburbia use on their saute stations. I like fresh garlic, and I like roasted garlic, but I'm not sure about this one. Furthermore, in Root's "Food of Italy", he writes, " The south is usually thought of as garlic country, but Apulia is cool toward garlic. In "This Cuisine" Italian food expert, Felice Cunsolo, writes, "garlic does not play a leading, but a secondary role; it should not call attention to its odor or its presence. Precisely for this reason, many specialties are characterized by a pleasing sweet undercurrent which comes from onions, totally or partly for garlic."" It also says that in Northern Puglia, more garlic is used, but the south uses mostly all onion. I don't know how much of this is still true, but there you have it.

Hathor, He's using it together. So, there is alot of garlic in that sauce. I'm not sure if this garlic preparation is a regional approach, or a personal touch. Anybody out there in TV land know the answer to this question? Could it be used in Spanish cooking. I've had cuttlefish, cooked with garlic, and squid ink, in a thick tomato sauce, served as a tapa. The Spanish controlled this area in the past. (?)

Kevin, it is a sheep's milk cheese. As quoted from Cooperativa Caseificio Pugliese, "the "Canestrato Pugiese" D.O.P. is a typical half cooked, hard paste cheese produced in a limited area of Puglia. It is entirely made from sheep's milk bred in the north west of Murge. It's organoleptic characteristics are strictly related to the cattle's feeding, which consists of chemical free vegetation.It is a rennet coagulated cheese, and after ripening for 3 to 4 months, the white-creamy paste is elastic and compact, with a slight savory taste. Successively, the cheese is treated with extra virgin olive oil, and after 10-12 months, it is ready for tasting. The paste becomes friable (?) with rere eyes (?), straw-colored, with a sharp taste and fragrant flavor." Puglia Cheese Cooperative If Puglia had Greco di Tufo, things may definitely turned out differently! ←

Kevin, I attribute it to the Canestrato Pugliese. It works with the seafood, and is a major component in giving their region its own flavor profile. Update; I talked with my friend, Chef Pasquale Celone, who was also on the trip. Pasquale is from Campania, and he said they never put cheese on seafood in Campania. (But, I know that they put clams & mussels on pizza, with cheese.) We brain stormed on a couple of points: 1) The type of cheese that they are using, Canestrato Pugliese, is milder in flavor than say, a pecororino romano, and therefore, doesn't over power the mild flavor of the seafood. 2) In restaurants, depending on the cheese, grated over a plate of seafood may create an unpleasant aroma, which may lead a customer, or people at the next table, to question the freshness of the seafood. 3) We discussed local wine. In Puglia, you'll find just about everybody drinking red wine, and especially negroamaro. They drink it with everything, and its pretty aggressive. It'll stand up to some big flavors, and especially an aged cheese. In Campagnia, you find a lot of white wine, Fiano & Greco di Tufo, which both are great with seafoods. Another thing that works very nicely with greco di tufo is fresh lemon juice, as in those beauties from the Amalfi coast, squeezed over the fish with capers, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt. I can't say that this has anything to do with it, but if the wine (greco di tufo) works better without, than why would you want to add cheese? Food for thought?

Swordfish with cuttlefish ink sauce Next, Chef Nicola Modugno prepares sliced swordfish with vegetables, and cuttle fish sauce with ink. Chef Nicola starts out with thin slices of swordfish... and blanched vegetables. he lays the swordfish slices on a work surface, and pats them dry with absorbent paper. He places a bundle of the blanched vegetables on one side of the swordfish. He seasons the swordfish with sea salt & fennel seed. Simply, fold over the free side, and press firmly with your hand. Transfer the fish to a baking pan, and drizzle generously with extra virgin olive oil, and a little more sea salt. The fish is ready for the oven. Because the fish is sliced thin, and the vegetables are already cooked, it wont take very long. Chef Nicola starts the cuttlefish sauce. He slices the cuttlefish, and Maresa, our translator, holds a packet of the ink that will be added to the sauce. This is chopped garlic, that is slow cooked in extra virgin olive oil that Chef Nicola uses in some of his cooking. Maresa explains, with Italian hand gestures, that some people like to taste alot of garlic in their food! He adds a couple ladles full to his pan that he will cook the cuttlefish sauce in. Chef Nicola heats up the pan and adds the cuttlefish. Next, he adds a fair amount of white wine... followed by heavy cream... and then comes that packet of ink. and this is what you get when you mix black ink with white cream!!! tastes better than it looks. Meanwhile, the swordfish has finished cooking. The plate is garnished with chopped parsley & peeled cherry tomatoes (not shown)

Day2 with Chef Nicola Modugno Chef Modugno shares his Paccheri with cuttlefish ragu & pecorino flakes He starts out with sliced onions & extra virgin olive oil, which he cooks to slightly brown. Next, he adds the cuttlefish that has been cut into pieces. Dry white wine is added next, and allowed to cook down for a few minutes, and seasoned with salt & pepper. Now, he adds tomato puree and whole canned tomatoes run through a mill. While the ragout simmers, he cooks the Paccheri in heavily salted water. The pasta gets tossed in the ragu to finish, and hits the plate. Chef Pasquale stands ready with a plate of Canestrato Pugliese pecorino & chopped parsley to garnish. There you have it.

Well, that indeed makes things very interesting! I did see an article in Saveuer Magazine awhile back on Argentinian Italian. Im gonna see if I can find it!

In regards to Manzanilla, that "salt" characteristic, I understand that it is a result of "micro-climate", and the flora, which is a particular yeast that forms on the surface of the wine as it ages, and only exists in close proximity to the sea, that gives it uniqueness. Perhaps Don Giovanni has a similar thing going on? All the science of winemaking is nice, but what is being left to individualism? In the end, you end up with pasteurized American cheese. I know, its all subjective.

And very under appreciated by the sheep?

When Italians immigrated to the States, this is what they brought with them. I have never brought a tear to someone's eye when they tasted food, till I met Christine. My friend, of Italian descent, wrote this; Food in my family is a time for sharing, a time for being proud, a time for giving and showing respect, for bonding family together, and leaving wonderful stories and memories of joy. Much food related memories still fill my heart from my childhood. My Nonni always told me, “Never make a pomodoro sauce without pork. The pork brings good luck!” It was only after many years that I realized what she meant. The pork made the sauce yummmmy!, and not that I was actually going have something wonderful and lucky happen to me...lol...but again...I agree...my favorite, and my best pomodoro sauce is made with a big piece of pork, seared, and slow cooked in the sauce until it begins to fall apart. The braised pork sliced thin, along with lamb, sausage, meatballs, Brociole; it is an intricate part of the table, by which I was influenced, by my Nonni! I am the middle daughter and the fifth child born, of ten children, to my parents; a first generation, Italian born father, and my mother is of English descent. I am the grand daughter of Italian immigrants. My grandfather, Daddo, is from Abruzzi (Chieti), and my grandmother, Nonni, is from Umbria. Like many immigrants, my Daddo came to America to establish a new beginning for his young family, leaving my Nonni and their three children in the care of family back home in Abruzzi. After working for three years digging ditches and whatever work he could find (even cooking himself), Daddo was able to buy a home in Everett Massachusetts, and bring his loved ones to America. Upon their arrival, only then did he discover that there was a fourth child born after he left for America. After the first year in America, my Nonni was homesick, and missing her family, so they sent for her only sister, my Aunt Suzi (Suzzeta), and her mother, my great Aunt Domedica. My grandfather bought them the house next door. My father was their second son, born the third child of eight. He graduated high school, and played trumpet in the school band. He was expected to marry an Italian girl, chosen by his family, to carry on Italian family traditions, and help my grandfather work his chicken farm. Instead, my father joined the Marines, and fortunately, before leaving for duty, he met my mother, not Italian, but of English descent, and married her just six weeks later. My mother, pregnant with their first of ten children, moved in with my father’s Italian family until he returned from his duties in the Marine Corps. During the time that my father was away, my Nonni made sure that this young English girl, my mother, learned everything necessary in order to continue the Italian family traditions of which my grand parents were so very proud. My mother came from a family of great cooks herself, and loved to cook. After all, her father owned a restaurant in Lynn Massachusetts, Uphams Corner! My mother took to Nonni’s guidance with an open heart. When my father returned home from the Marines, he moved his young family into a small, one bedroom, basement apartment. My mother had nothing but a two burner camping stove on which to cook, and yet, she made pies! Mmmmmmmmm....lol! This is a story in itself, and we have the family photographs to prove it...ha ha ha. Indeed, my mother was quite the inventor, as well as a great cook! Immediately, my Nonni approved of this English woman that married her son, for as wise as Nonni was, she saw the strength in my mother, Italian or not! Every Sunday, my parents packed up the family and returned to Everett, to feast, to bond, and to share! My mother made sure that Nonni's grandchildren were all exposed to her Italian traditions with respect and Love! When we visited Everett, one would find my Nonni, my mother, and aunts, all bustling about in the kitchen, each having there own duties and responsibilities, all guided, of course, by Nonni. But nonetheless, all in harmony with the fabulous out come...food...food...food! Antipasti, soup, bread, cheeses, meats, pastas, fruits, nuts, sweets; it was an all day affair As I got older, Nonni would call me over, and give me small tasks at first. She could see that I would rather be in the kitchen, than out playing in the yard with my cousins and siblings. I adore the memories and her broken English, her smiles, pats on the back, and her hugs, rewarding me with a quarter at the end of our visit for my labor of love! Hahaha. When Nonni would come to our house on Sunday, she would always show her approval toward my mother with a caring hug and warm smiles, as she saw my mother sharing moments with me in her kitchen. My mother continued the family tradition every Sunday at our home for all the days of her life, after the life of my Grandmother. In the spring and summer months, we would travel to Billerica Massachusetts, where Daddo owned a summer home, and spent his most loving and treasured moments of his life, growing grapes for wine, raising chickens, and tending his vegetable gardens. It was a bit of Italy, the home he had left behind so many years ago. I remember when I was a very young girl, Daddo lifting me up along with my older sisters and letting us jump about in the big tub of grapes that he would make into wine. I remember the huge platters and bowls of various dishes on the table, breads and spreads, and fruits and sweets! There was music and chatter, laughing and smiles. It was a warm and loving tradition of family and bond, a lesson that filled my heart, still to this day, and I carried on this tradition to my daughters. As I married, and began to raise my own family, I carried on the family tradition with homemade soups, sauces, breads and sweets, gatherings of old and young, friends and neighbors family. I would mix my Italian heritage along with my English heritage in the kitchen, and my children looked forward to the dumplings and the Popovers, as much as they looked forward to eggplant and crostini! An important lesson that I was taught by both my grandmother and mother, regardless of the recipe, make it taste good! Goda...Mangi...Amore! Any opportunity that I had to prepare a feast, I took it. Throughout the years I catered weddings and graduations, celebrations and holidays, my menus always filled with family tradition. Love and respect were put into every task with pride and honor. Always with passion for homemade cooking, and delighting my family with delicious foods, I carried a dream, to some day honor my family and my heritage with a fine restaurant, La Panarda style, a gathering of others and their families, sharing and bonding, laughing and enjoying, leaving each person with their own special moments and memories. Now, at the age of forty-eight, I have finally taken my dream to reality. Not without consequences, not without challenges, not without hard work! That is the way I was taught, that is my upbringing that is my pride! Loving what you’re doing, in truth, isn't really work after all! My Grand mother, Nonni, and my mother, Eleanor, are surely smiling and supporting our truth, food = family! Thank you for giving me this incredible opportunity, and thank you, Nonni, and Momma, for introducing me to this Love! Sincerely, CMP

Oh, How ironic! I'm sitting here reading eGullet threads, and my six year old keeps coming back time after time, for another cracker, spread with duck foies gras mousse, and a little fig jam. How unhealthy is that?! And by the way, I must address Suzy Sushi. I grew up in Hawaii, and we had the very best school lunches, compared to what mainland kids get. And... we're talking about a multi-cultural colony there. People in the islands know how to eat well. Go to any beach park on a Sunday afternoon, and smell the hibachis all over the place! Come to the mainland... all hot dogs & hamburgers. I miss it.

It reminds me of those sheep that graze on the salt marsh in Brittany. I have never tasted it (the lamb), but I would like to experience it! I wouln't say it is a flaw, but then, I'm a bit of a "Black Sheep" myself. I would enjoy working with the wine to see how it reacts with food. I think that most people would just taste it, thumb their nose at it, and move on. These individuals are usually not very "food" savvy wine drinkers. I have found alot of excellent food wines that are very underappreciated by the "Wine Snobs." They judge a wine most times on its own, without any food. These kind of "wine experts" drive me nuts.

Mark, I found the name of the cooking instructor in "Flavors of Puglia" and her name is Paola Pettini. That all I can tell you for now. I sent an email to Associazione Cuochi Barese to see what i can find out from them. I'll keep you posted.

Hathor, I did not see a rotisseria (?) while there. I was expecting to, but it didn't happen. One night out, at the pizzeria in Giovinazzo, someone in the group brought in gnumerelli for us to try. They were awesome. These are little pieces of the lamb offal, wrapped with a lamb casing, then grilled. They were very good, and I ate a bunch of them. I guess they are pretty labor intensive to make. In my Culinaria Italy book, they show a butcher shop in Martina Franca, that cooks meat on big skewers inside a wood fired oven. One week wasn't enough, but a good start.

I just found the resource for these little red fish, they are called "Triglie", and yes, they are a (rock)mullet as Kevin72 pointed out.

Well, that concludes Day1 The food was fantastic!!! The dishes are not complex, but the flavor is incredible.

Trippa d'Agnello, the food of the poor Chef Giacomo explains that the people of Puglia were very poor, and literally, starving to death. The land owner got all the meat, and the farmer would get what was left over. As with so many ingredients, like the lampascione, these poor people figured out how to make them edible. This dish is a masterpiece in my book! The tripe is washed and scraped until it turns white. Then it is boiled till soft. Then it is cut into squares, and filled with a sliver of garlic, some chopped parsley, and a piece of Canestrato pugliese, then rolled and stuck with a toothpick. Next, the Chef cooks minced onion, celery, and seeded tomatoes, in extra virgin olive oil. The "involtine" are then placed in the brazier, along with peeled cuts of potatoes, and wetted to cover with the tripe's broth. This is braised further for another hour, or so. You can see that it is garnished with more canestrato Pugliese pecorino, and chopped parsley.